Run the civil prisons like the CF Service and Detention Barracks is run. Somewhere around 95-97% of those sent to CFSDB do NOT reoffend. Solitary is no fun, since you actually get fed bread and water. The only link I could find with any info on what the prison itself is like, and its a couple years old.

__________________The oath to serve your country did not include a contract for normal luxury, and comforts enjoyed within our society. On the contrary it implies hardships, loyalty and devotion to duty, regardless of rank

Interesting piece on the CF prison. Unfortunately, it's not all that applicable to the general population, since the prisoners are people who volunteered and successfully entered a highly disciplined system before they screwed up. That, and you'll note major offences are sent to civilian prisons for long-term incarceration anyway. The CF facility is more a retraining and rehabilitation facility than punishment -- which makes sense, since the aim is to get the prisoner back into being an effective member of the military.

That's a point which gets lost in prisons and the debate over them, I notice. Punishment is only one aspect, and is ineffective by itself. If the prison system doesn't address what will happen after the person leaves, the chances are that they'll be coming back.

Though I do note the point in the article about drug/alcohol addiction being a common cause or contributor to the breaches in military discipline, and the fact the military ensures the prisoners go through detox and treatment. The Harper government's plan to increase prison population does not include any plans to increase the amount of treatment spaces.

Long-term consequences tend to be ignored as inconvenient when policy is driven by ideology.